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Category: London

Lossenham, London and Maritime Kent – exciting times!

Before I get to trailing the third Lunch Time Lecture that next week will be given by Dr Lily Hawker-Yates, I thought I would pass on the fantastic news that Boydell is very happy with the Maritime Kent through the Ages essay collection and it is now about to move to the typesetting stage, the proofs arriving back with us after that for indexing etc. Thus, a major source of celebration and relief, and I am envisaging a joint Centre and Kent Archaeological Society (as the largest sponsor) conference in the autumn.

Medieval Jews and the Kent History Postgraduates

So we are up and running because Dean Irwin from CCCU has today given the first of the FREE Lunch Time Lectures which was absolutely excellent. More on that anon, but to say next week our speaker at 1pm on Wednesday will be Dr Daniella Gonzalez whose talk is entitled ‘Conceptualising Common Profit in Late Medieval London: the Jubilee Book, a Case Study’.

Tudors and Stuarts 2021 and much, much more!

A Happy New Year to all readers, albeit I appreciate it has been and continues to be exceedingly tough, including as we now head into a third lockdown in Great Britain. Consequently, I thought this week I would concentrate on the upcoming online events the Centre is organising between now and Easter, including the Tudors and Stuarts History Weekend and Lunch Time Lectures.

Celebrating Kentish Book Culture and other Centre matters

Before I get to the main report this week on Dr Claire Bartram’s Kentish Book Culture online book launch, I thought I would draw your attention to the upcoming Annual Becket Lecture on Wednesday 16 December at 7pm on Teams Live Events. This online lecture will be given by Professor Paul Bennett MBE on ‘Canterbury during the Time of Thomas Becket’. Please note the lecture is free. You can find details through the Centre’s weblink at: https://www.canterbury.ac.uk/arts-and-humanities/events/arts-and-humanities/ckhh/canterbury-during-the-time-of-thomas-becket.aspx and to join please copy the long url below into your web browser and click on it a few minutes before the lecture which is due to start at 7pm: https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_MjkzNTM5NDItMWQ1NC00MGM3LThiZWMtMWQwYTAyODUyMmRh%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%220320b2da-22dd-4dab-8c21-6e644ba14f13%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%225438ffb7-ff66-44f6-9ccf-cf504309571b%22%2c%22IsBroadcastMeeting%22%3atrue%7d we shall look forward to your company.

MEMS Lib and Canterbury rebels

This week I thought I would start with a collaboration between the Centre and MEMS at Kent as part of their new online initiative. Led by the Kent team comprising a Taught MA student and four PhD students (one has just completed), this new website will provide information about freely available online resources arranged thematically in the fields of medieval and early modern studies; with a forum so that researchers can raise questions, seek assistance or notify others about newly discovered resources. This exciting development ‘Unchaining the library’ was launched this week and is already receiving rave reviews. If you want to check it out, please go to: https://www.memslib.co.uk/

Maritime Kent and other research topics

This week I thought I would catch up with what Dr Diane Heath has been doing recently, as well as where I and my fellow editors are with Maritime Kent. In some ways the later stages towards publication are more feasible at the moment, compared to the earlier part of completing research and writing where access to archives and libraries is extremely important. However, before I come to these developments, the CCCU Kent History Postgraduates met again this week.

Exploring remembrance at Canterbury

This week I thought I would take my cue from the events of last weekend and the idea of significant anniversaries – the international remembrance of VE Day 75 years ago and a local remembrance of Sir Roger Manwood’s foundation of his almshouses in Canterbury 450 years ago. Of course, the ceremonies and other events planned for both of these either didn’t happen at all, especially in the case of Manwood’s almshouses, or were very different than first planned, the VE Day commemoration of those who had come through WWII , but even more those who hadn’t. However, the actual focus of this blog is neither of these, and hopefully I’ll be able to report on the Manwood event next year, nor is it Becket 2020, which seems to becoming Becket 2020/21, although Becket might be said to have a walk-on part.

Clocks and Kent History Postgraduates

As we hopefully begin to get some idea of the government’s timetable and strategy regarding how to get out of lockdown, I thought this week I would use the idea of time – in the form of clocks, and bells – the latter because as a mark of the 8pm Thursday clapping for keyworkers, the bell at Canterbury Cathedral tolls for two minutes. Nevertheless, before I come to my topic, I want to report on the fortnightly meeting of the Kent History Postgraduate group.

Hospitals and the sick – then and now

As we are almost into May and lockdown measures are still in place, I thought this week I would take the blog back into the Middle Ages, which I’m sure will surprise no one! Also, I expect a sizeable number of people will know that I have been researching hospitals in medieval England, especially in Kent, off and on for longer than I care to think about. Consequently, with the emphasis on the sterling work being undertaken by hospitals and care/residential homes under the NHS banner at the moment, I thought a short piece on: who cared for the sick in medieval England – the role of the hospital, might be appropriate and of interest.